#Feature: Audiobooks and me 2024… a year of listening #audiobooks #listening #veryshortreviews

The reviews I write – and share – are always books I’ve read on my kindle, but it’s become a bit of a tradition to produce an annual round-up of the audiobooks I’ve listened to over the previous year. If you’ve read any of my previous audiobook posts (two for 2022 – here and here – and one for 2023), you’ll already know that I find it quite impossible to make myself comfortable in a chair and simply listen – my attention wanders, I lose track of the story, and even fall asleep (and it’s never – well, rarely – the fault of the book…).  All my listening is done when walking on my own – and just sometimes, I’ll keep my earbuds in when making breakfast on my return, or when doing a bit of internet surfing (until I find I’m drifting again…!).

Audiobooks do take me such a long time to get through – but it does rather depend on the weather and how much I’m able to be out and about (and it hasn’t been a particularly good year for that!). And you will find that the books I listen to are very different from my usual reading – a few thrillers (they’ve become my favourites – I walk faster, sometimes further, and the pacing works far better…), some book club choices, and others just books I fancied trying. And I don’t tag the authors – if anyone whose books I’ve listened to spots this post, I’ll apologise in advance – because I don’t always enjoy every book quite as much as I hope to. It’s all about my personal listening experience, and perhaps drawing attention to some audiobooks that might have skipped your radar and that you might like to try too – so please don’t be put off reading or listening to them if you find me being less than complimentary!

2023 ended with The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman, narrated by Fiona Shaw – I can’t believe now that I took against this series so badly at my first attempt. These books really are just perfect for audio – the narrator is wonderful and makes the listening such a pleasure (I bemoaned the change from Lesley Manville, but Fiona Shaw has really made the books’ voice her own, breathing life into all the characters). Far more than just a murder mystery, the humour keeps me chuckling as I walk (and yes, I do get some strange looks…) – but this one had a touch of real heartbreak too, quite beautifully handled. Loved it!

But my first complete book of 2024? Well, it was Weyward by Emilia Hart – narrated by Aisha Kala, Helen Keeley and Nell Barlow. I chose it as a read for my book club – amid a little grumbling about “oh no, not witches again…” – just because I’d read so many fantastic reviews…

KATE, 2019

 

Kate flees London – abandoning everything – for Cumbria and Weyward Cottage, inherited from her great-aunt. There, a secret lurks in the bones of the house, hidden ever since the witch-hunts of the 17th century.

 

VIOLET, 1942

 

Violet is more interested in collecting insects and climbing trees than in becoming a proper young lady. Until a chain of shocking events changes her life forever.

 

ALTHA, 1619

 

Altha is on trial for witchcraft, accused of killing a local man. Known for her uncanny connection with nature and animals, she is a threat that must be eliminated.

 

But Weyward women belong to the wild. And they cannot be tamed…

 

Weaving together the stories of three women across five centuries, Weyward is an enthralling novel of female resilience and the transformative power of the natural world.

Everything told me I’d love this one – I’ll be honest, and admit that I think I might have preferred to read it rather than listen, although there was absolutely nothing wrong with the three-part narration. The lives of three strong women, so cleverly entwined – and beautiful writing, with its emphasis on links with the natural world and a touch of the supernatural. My attention did wander a little along the way – perhaps just not right listen/right time for me, as the story’s construction was just perfect, with the tension in the last third keeping me entirely hooked until the very end. It was perhaps a little less “deep” than I expected it to be? The book club’s reaction was mixed – rather coloured by the theme of “all men are evil”. I enjoyed it – five stars on Goodreads, but maybe more like four on the enjoyment scale.

Next up? Yellowface by R. F. Kuang, narrated by Helen Laser – I was SO intrigued by this one, and I don’t think I’d seen a single negative review to put me off  (and yes, my book club read it too…).

THIS IS ONE HELL OF A STORY… IT’S JUST NOT HERS TO TELL.

 

When failed writer June Hayward witnesses her rival Athena Liu die in a freak accident, she sees her opportunity… and takes it.

 

So what if it means stealing Athena’s final manuscript?

 

So what if it means ‘borrowing’ her identity?

 

And so what if the first lie is only the beginning…

 

Finally, June has the fame she always deserved. But someone is about to expose her…

 

What happens next is entirely everyone else’s fault.

I found this one totally delicious – darkly entertaining, the social media aspects painfully accurate, a searing indictment of the contemporary state of US publishing, a fascinating exploration of the question of cultural appropriation, and a tremendously engaging read. I thought the narrator was just perfect – very much enjoyed this one! (As an aside, did anyone else see the film American Fiction? Still available – free – on Prime Video, and another interesting take on similar themes… I’d recommend it!).

The next book wasn’t my personal choice, but a book club one – Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead, narrated by Cassandra Campbell and Alex McKenna. If “shortlisted for the Booker Prize 2021” wasn’t enough to put me off (shortlisted for the Women’s Prize in Fiction 2022 too), the idea of 25+ hours of listening (the paperback is 688 pages…) filled me with a sense of dread…

I was born to be a wanderer.

 

From the night she is rescued as a baby out of the flames of a sinking ship, to the day she joins a pair of daredevil pilots looping and diving over the rugged forests of her childhood, to the thrill of flying Spitfires during the war, the life of Marian Graves has always been marked by a lust for freedom and danger.

 

In 1950, she embarks on her life’s dream – to fly a Great Circle around the globe, pole to pole. But after a crash landing, she finds herself stranded on the Antarctic ice without enough fuel. With one fearsome piece of water separating her from completion of the Circle, she writes one last entry in her logbook.

 

She is ready for her final journey.

 

Half a century later, Hadley Baxter, a brilliant, troubled Hollywood starlet is irresistibly drawn to play Marian Graves, a role that will lead her to probe the deepest mysteries of the vanished pilot’s life.

 

Great Circle is an enthralling journey over oceans and continents and a drama of exhilarating power. Combining unforgettable characters and thrilling suspense, it is a sweeping story of loss and obsession, sacrifice and survival, of the unknowable mysteries of freedom, love and life itself.

How wrong can you be? Yes, I did think it was far, far too long, with too many diversions along the way (in need of a strong editor?) – but it was such a well told story (or several) set against a sweeping canvas with a multitude of engaging themes, filled with fascinating and well drawn characters. It hooked me from the very beginning, kept me listening at every opportunity, and I was more than happy to follow its meandering journey through to its emotional end… to such an extent that I’d really like to read or listen to more from the author. And I bet you weren’t expecting that, were you?

My next listen was a book I’d read and enjoyed 15+ years ago – chosen by my book group, and I decided to try it as an audiobook this time. I’m Not Scared was written by Nicole Ammaniti, translated by Jonathan Hunt, and narrated by Dennis Olsen.

A widely acclaimed international best seller, I’m Not Scared combines a coming-of-age narrative with a satisfying and spine-tingling story of suspense.

 

A sweltering heat wave hits a tiny village in Southern Italy, sending the adults to seek shelter while their children bicycle freely throughout the countryside, playing games and getting into trouble. When the gang find a dilapidated farmhouse, nine-year-old Michele Amitrano makes a discovery so momentous he dare not tell a soul. It is a secret that will force Michele to question everything and everyone around him.

 

An enthralling thriller, I’m Not Scared is also a devastatingly authentic portrayal of childhood and the tension when it must join the adult world.

Just five and a bit hours for this one (rather a relief…), and I was just as impressed by this book on audio as I was first time around. Set in 1970s Italy (really brought to life), the story – part coming-of-age, with more than a touch of mystery and suspense – is told from a child’s viewpoint. I’ve noticed some didn’t like the narration – I thought he got it just right. Such an engaging story capturing the loss of innocence – and, if you haven’t discovered it before, one I’d highly recommend.

As I’d already read the next few book club choices, time at last to read some personal choices I was really looking forward to – the first being Leave No Trace by Jo Callaghan, the second book in her Kat and Lock series, narrated by Rose Akroyd.

One detective driven by instinct, the other by logic. It will take both to find a killer who knows the true meaning of fear…

 

When the body of a man is found crucified at the top of Mount Judd, DCS Kat Frank and AIDE Lock – the world’s first AI detective – are thrust into the spotlight with their first live case.

 

But when they discover another man dead – also crucified – it appears that the killer is only just getting started. When the Future Policing Unit issues an extraordinary warning to local men to avoid drinking in pubs, being out alone late at night and going home with strangers, they face a hostile media frenzy. Whilst they desperately search for connections between the victims, time is running out for them to join the dots and prevent another death.

 

And if Kat and Lock know anything, it’s that killers rarely stop – until they are made to.

Is this a series everyone else has already read? I really loved the first book, In the Blink of an Eye – and I thought this one was even better. Such tautly written crime fiction/police procedural, given that extra dimension through the introduction of the AI elements and the debate about what it means to be human. The relationship between Kat and Locke, the fascinating scientific content, the whole cast of well drawn characters, its sheer originality – a superb narrator too, and a compelling story leading up to a tense climax that had me unable to stop listening until the book’s unexpectedly emotional end. I listened to this book beginning-to-end over two days – unheard of for me – and loved every single moment. Quite wonderful!

And another personal choice followed – Geneva by Richard Armitage, narrated by the author, Nicola Walker and Jane Perry. I was particularly drawn to this one by the fact it was an Audible original, and the big names associated with it – I particular enjoy it when my audiobooks are more like radio plays, and I had such high hopes of this one…

How far would you go for someone you love?

 

Nobel Prize-winning scientist Sarah Collier has taken a step back from work to spend more time with her family. Movie nights with her husband Daniel and their daughter Maddie are a welcome respite from the scrutiny of the world’s press. As much as it hurts, it’s good to be able to see her father more too. He’s suffering from Alzheimer’s and needs special care.

 

Sarah has started to show tell-tale signs of the disease too. She’s been experiencing blackouts and memory loss. It’s early days but she must face the possibility that she won’t be there to see her daughter grow up. Daniel, a neuroscientist himself, is doing his best to be supportive but she already knows that she will have to be the strong one. For all of them.

 

So when Sarah is invited to be the guest of honour at a prestigious biotech conference in Geneva she declines, wanting to stay out of the public eye – that is until Daniel shows her the kind of work that the enigmatic Mauritz Schiller has been developing.

 

Flown first class to the spectacular alpine city and housed in a luxury hotel, Sarah and Daniel are thrust back into the spotlight. As they try to shut out the noise of the public media storm, in private Sarah is struggling with her escalating symptoms. And the true extent of what Schiller has achieved is a revelation. This is technology that could change medicine forever. More than that, it could save Sarah’s life.

 

But technology so valuable attracts all kinds of interest. Wealthy investors are circling, controversial blogger Terri Landau is all over the story, and someone close to Schiller seems bent on taking advantage of the situation for themselves. Sarah feels threatened and does not know who to trust – including herself. Far from being her lifeline Schiller’s technology may be her undoing.

 

As events spiral out of control Sarah and Daniel are faced with the ultimate question: how far would you go for someone you love?

It’ll come as no surprise that the narration was everything I hoped it would be – and the whole story filled with drama and excitement, wholly unexpected twists and turns, and all with a pace that never flagged. But it was also strong on the emotional complexities – it actually had me in tears at times. If you think audiobooks aren’t for you – well, this might just be a good one to start with. Just wonderful… I thoroughly enjoyed it!

And then yet another personal choice, found through some fantastic reviews from fellow bloggers – Anna O by Matthew Blake, narrated by Dan Stevens, Hannah Curtis, Sarah Cullum and 2 more.

IT’S THE CRIME OF THE CENTURY

 

Everyone knows the Anna O case.

 

Everyone knows it was her fingerprints on the knife.

 

But no-one knows the secrets of her sleepwalking.

 

No-one knows whether she really meant to kill that night.

 

As a trial nears, the mystery reawakens.

 

Is she innocent, or guilty?

 

IT’S TIME TO PICK A SIDE…

I’ll admit I found this one a bit of a mixed bag – I found the whole story very original and totally gripping until the last quarter, when I felt the pace flagged a little and the outcome just didn’t quite fulfil the initial promise. I did enjoy the narration though – and overall I rather enjoyed both the premise and its execution.

And yet another personal choice – The Family Experiment by John Marrs, narrated by Clare Corbett, Clifford Samuel, Eilidh Beaton, Joshua Riley and 4 more…

Some families are virtually perfect…

 

The world’s population is soaring, creating overcrowded cities and an economic crisis. A growing number of people can no longer afford to start families, let alone raise them.

 

But for those desperate to experience parenthood, there is an alternative. For a monthly fee, clients can create a virtual child from scratch, accessing them via the Metaverse and a VR headset. To launch this new initiative, the company behind MetaChildren has created a reality TV show. It will follow its contestants as they raise a MetaChild from birth to the age of eighteen, in a condensed nine-month time period. The prize: the right to keep their virtual child – or risk it all for the chance of a real baby…

 

Set in the same universe as John Marrs’s bestselling novel The One and The Marriage Act, The Family Experiment is a dark and twisted thriller about the ultimate ‘tamagotchi’ – a virtual baby.

It’s not very often I pre-order an audiobook, but this time I did. The author has a really wonderful imagination – and this was a very slick audio production that was more like listening to a radio drama. But I have to admit that I didn’t enjoy this one quite as much as the others I’ve listened to – I loved both The One and The Marriage Act. There’s a particularly large cast of characters who sometimes lost me a little, and I just felt less invested in the end game than I wanted to be. Well worth a listen – but I was just a little disappointed…

Back to the book club choices – this time The Phoenix Crown by Kate Quinn and Janie Chang, narrated by Katherine Chin, Saskia Maarleveld and one more.

An unforgettable story about the intertwined lives of two wronged women, spanning from the chaos of the San Francisco earthquake to the glittering palaces of Versailles…

 

San Francisco, 1906. In a city bustling with newly minted millionaires and scheming upstarts, two very different women hope to change their fortunes: Gemma, a golden-haired, silver-voiced soprano whose career desperately needs rekindling, and Suling, a petite and resolute Chinatown embroideress who is determined to escape an arranged marriage.

 

Their paths cross when they are drawn into the orbit of Henry Thornton, a charming railroad magnate whose extraordinary collection of Chinese antiques includes the fabled Phoenix Crown, a legendary relic of Beijing’s fallen Summer Palace.

 

His patronage offers Gemma and Suling the chance of a lifetime, but their lives are thrown into turmoil when a devastating earthquake rips San Francisco apart and Thornton disappears, leaving behind a mystery reaching further than anyone could have imagined…

 

Until the Phoenix Crown reappears five years later at a sumptuous Paris costume ball, drawing Gemma and Suling together in one last desperate quest for justice…

One of our group had read other books by Kate Quinn and very much enjoyed them – and she’s been an author I’d wanted to read. Had I read it on my kindle, I honestly think I might have enjoyed it – but as an audiobook I found it too slow for my tastes, not enough narrative drive to hold my attention. Perhaps because of the shared authorship? I don’t know – but I’m afraid I gave up at just over 50%.

The next book club choice appealed rather more – The Coast Road by Alan Murrin, narrated by Jessica Regan.

It’s 1994 in County Donegal, Ireland, and everyone is talking about Colette Crowley – the writer, the bohemian, the woman who left her husband and sons to pursue a relationship with a married man in Dublin. But now Colette is back, and nobody knows why.

 

Returning to the community to try and reclaim her old life, Colette quickly learns that they are unwilling to give it back to her. The man to whom she is still married is denying her access to her children, and while the legalisation of divorce might be just around the corner, Colette finds herself caught between her old life and the freedom for which she risked everything. Desperate to see her children, she enlists the help of Izzy, a housewife and mother of two, and the women forge a friendship that will send them on a spiralling journey – one toward a path of self-discovery, and the other toward tragedy.

 

Brilliantly observed from a sharp new literary talent, The Coast Road is a novel about a closed community and the consequences of daring to move against the tide.

One of those quiet books I often enjoy, with wonderfully drawn characters, authentic relationships, a very strong sense of place – and more than a few shocking events. Timeless in so many ways – although the story is rooted in the relatively recent introduction of the Irish Divorce Act. Despite the excellent narrator, I wouldn’t really recommend listening to this one, I found it a little slow moving – but I switched to a kindle version half way through, and really appreciated the nuances of this debut author’s lovely writing.

I’ve been wanting to try M. W. Craven’s Poe and Tilly books for ages, knowing how many reading friends have loved them – so when my book club thought it’d be good to read a thriller for a change, I immediately thought of The Puppet Show – narrated by John Banks.

A serial killer is burning people alive in the Lake District’s prehistoric stone circles. He leaves no clues and the police are helpless. When his name is found carved into the charred remains of the third victim, disgraced detective Washington Poe is brought back from suspension and into an investigation he wants no part of.

 

Reluctantly partnered with the brilliant, but socially awkward, civilian analyst, Tilly Bradshaw, the mismatched pair uncover a trail that only he is meant to see. The elusive killer has a plan and for some reason Poe is part of it.

 

As the body count rises, Poe discovers he has far more invested in the case than he could have possibly imagined. And in a shocking finale that will shatter everything he’s ever believed about himself, Poe will learn that there are things far worse than being burned alive.

Winner of the 2019 CWA Gold Dagger Award, shortlisted for the 2019 Best Crime Novel of the Year in the Amazon Publishing Readers’ Awards – strange, isn’t it, how I’m put of by “Booker Prize”, but those achievements just made me want to read this one even more. For those unfamiliar with the books, this the first in the series – and why on earth did I leave it so long? Wonderful characters, edge of the seat plotting, great story – I so rarely race through an audiobook, but I had to finish this one in two listening sessions. Superb writing, but also must say how much I enjoyed the brilliant narrator. Second in series downloaded – and so looking forward to it! Oh, and I must add – the book club rather enjoyed it too…

Next was a book long on my “must read” list, also read by the book group – In Memoriam by Alice Winn, narrated by Christian Coulson.

In 1914, war feels far away to Henry Gaunt and Sidney Ellwood. They’re too young to enlist, and anyway, Gaunt is fighting his own private battle – an all-consuming infatuation with the dreamy, poetic Ellwood – not having a clue that his best friend is in love with him too.

 

When Gaunt’s mother asks him to enlist, he signs up immediately, relieved to escape his overwhelming feelings. But Ellwood and their classmates soon follow him to the front. Ellwood and Gaunt find love in the trenches – but just as war brought them together, it can tear them apart…

 

An epic, unforgettable love story between two soldiers in the First World War, In Memoriam is a breath-taking debut.

One reviewer called this book “devastatingly beautiful”, and I can only agree. This really was the most exceptional book – powerful, visual, very real, and I often found it painful because of the stunningly graphic descriptions of the young men’s experiences at the front. It was also a love story that deeply moved me – extraordinary and unforgettable. And the audio experience? The narrator was fantastic too.

When the book club then chose to read Intermezzo by Sally Rooney (narrated by Éanna Hardwicke) I’ll admit my heart sank a little – I’d tried reading Normal People in the past, and concluded that her writing really wasn’t for me. But never say never – I thought I might try again…

From the author of the multimillion-copy bestseller Normal People, an exquisitely moving story about grief, love and family.

 

Aside from the fact that they are brothers, Peter and Ivan Koubek seem to have little in common.

 

Peter is a Dublin lawyer in his thirties – successful, competent and apparently unassailable. But in the wake of their father’s death, he’s medicating himself to sleep and struggling to manage his relationships with two very different women – his enduring first love Sylvia, and Naomi, a college student for whom life is one long joke.

 

Ivan is a twenty-two-year-old competitive chess player. He has always seen himself as socially awkward, a loner, the antithesis of his glib elder brother. Now, in the early weeks of his bereavement, Ivan meets Margaret, an older woman emerging from her own turbulent past, and their lives become rapidly and intensely intertwined.

 

For two grieving brothers and the people they love, this is a new interlude – a period of desire, despair and possibility – a chance to find out how much one life might hold inside itself without breaking.

But I’m rather sorry to tell you that I failed to finish. There was a lot to enjoy in the characters and relationships, and the narration was excellent – but I really struggled to engage with all that introspection. I even speeded things up, up to 1.5 – but still drifted off if I tried listening for longer. I even tried the kindle version instead – but with the absence of speech marks only one of the issues, I must reluctantly conclude that I was right – Sally Rooney’s writing, however stunning others find it, just isn’t for me…

So next, some light relief I thought – We Solve Murders by Richard Osman, narrated by Nicola Walker…

A brand new series.

 

An iconic new detective duo.

 

And a thrilling new murder to solve . . .

 

Steve Wheeler is enjoying retired life. He does the odd bit of investigation work, but he prefers his familiar habits and routines: the pub quiz, his favourite bench, his cat waiting for him when he comes home. His days of adventure are over: adrenaline is daughter-in-law Amy’s business now.

 

Amy Wheeler thinks adrenaline is good for the soul. As a private security officer, she doesn’t stay still long enough for habits or routines. She’s currently on a remote island keeping world-famous author Rosie D’Antonio alive. Which was meant to be an easy job . . .

 

Then a dead body, a bag of money and a killer with their sights on Amy have her sending an SOS to the only person she trusts. A breakneck race around the world begins, but can Amy and Steve stay one step ahead of a deadly enemy?

Perhaps the effect of the last book I listened to was still weighing me down a bit, but I just didn’t love this one – the first in a new series – as much as I really wanted to. The characters are superb, there are plenty of laugh out loud moments, a touch of poignancy, a very fast moving plot… but I found myself a bit unengaged at times, and rather missed the Thursday Murder Club. Although she’s so often a favourite narrator, I wasn’t sure about Nicola Walker’s voicing of the story either – found it a bit “flat” at times, sometimes a touch too staccato. Or maybe it was just me – I’ll still be back for the next instalment…

So how could I end the year? Well, I just had to go back to a series I’d enjoyed – Black Summer by M. W. Craven, the second of his Poe and Tilly books, again narrated by the wonderful John Banks…

After The Puppet Show, a new storm is coming . . .

 

Jared Keaton, chef to the stars. Charming. Charismatic. Psychopath . . . He’s currently serving a life sentence for the brutal murder of his daughter, Elizabeth. Her body was never found and Keaton was convicted largely on the testimony of Detective Sergeant Washington Poe.

 

So when a young woman staggers into a remote police station with irrefutable evidence that she is Elizabeth Keaton, Poe finds himself on the wrong end of an investigation, one that could cost him much more than his career.

 

Helped by the only person he trusts, the brilliant but socially awkward Tilly Bradshaw, Poe races to answer the only question that matters: how can someone be both dead and alive at the same time?

 

And then Elizabeth goes missing again – and all paths of investigation lead back to Poe.

 

The gripping new thriller in the Washington Poe series from M. W. Craven, winner of the CWA Gold Dagger Award for best crime novel of 2019.

Yes, I think I can safely say I’ve found a new favourite author – and narrator. The same fantastic characters, the relationships between them, the gripping story, the bits of clever misdirection, the shocks and surprises – crime writing at its very best. In fact, it was SO good that I listened as I took down my Christmas decorations, then sat in a chair for a couple of hours because I desperately wanted to know the outcome. And that’s rather a first…

And that’s it for 2024! I’m really tempted to just carry on with Poe and Tilly, and most definitely will whenever I can – but we all need a bit of variety, don’t we? So, on to my next listen – and it’ll be Jennie Godfrey’s The List of Suspicious Things. I see the wonderful Joanne Froggatt is one of several narrators – it really does look like an audiobook I’ll enjoy. Has anyone really enjoyed other crime and thrillers on audio, and think they might be for me? Do let me know – and I’ll let you know how I found them in a similar post to this at the same time next year! Happy listening…